The portion of voters in the 4th Congressional District who said they have a unfavorable opinion of DesJarlais has doubled since the summer, and his standing among women is “in freefall,” a pollster for Democratic state Sen. Eric Stewart told reporters.

DesJarlais leads Stewart by 5 percentage points, Andrew Myers of Myers Research & Strategic Services said. The claim is based on a poll of 400 likely voters taken Sunday and Monday. The poll has a margin of error of 4.9 percent.

The shift in opinion was most likely caused by the news about DesJarlais, Myers said.

“What else would explain it?” he said.

The poll results come as Stewart is trying to build enthusiasm for his campaign as it enters the homestretch. Text messages to supporters sent at 11 a.m. touted the poll as showing the race in a “dead heat.” The message linked recipients to a page where they could donate from their cell phones.

Campaign filings this week show DesJarlais with nearly $600,000 in cash on hand, seven times more than the $85,000 Stewart had in the bank.